Eat your way around a night market

Food is a real highlight of a tour in Taiwan and the island has some of the most interesting and mouth-watering night markets in all of Asia. You might not want to dine in a night market every night, but we highly recommend doing it once or twice throughout your trip or at least taking a stroll around to see the colourful vendors and their weird and wonderful cuisine. It is ideal to visit with your guide so that they can explain what things are as you walk around and help you order, although it is also fun to walk around on your own, pointing to things you’d like to try – whether you know what they are or not! You’ll find everything from ‘stinky tofu’ to spicy steamed buns to poached quails eggs to just about anything you can imagine on a barbecue!  And for pudding, make sure you try a famous Taiwanese custard pancake.

The most famous night market is Shilin, in the north of Taipei, but there are numerous others scattered around the capital and indeed around most other towns and cities. One of our favourites is Liuhe night market in Kaohsiung which has a great selection of fresh seafood.